Cc

- Winkler and the Pope, let’ em fish and leave
em alone: We’ve got a celebrity in town.

AO Terrace Review — Wednesday, May 22, 1991

EDITORIAL _

Dear Nicole...

"We are, after all, professionals.“
—— Hunter S. Thompson

ould it really be her? The Nicole
Parton? Here?
Tom Selleck and Don Johnson, Henry

A messenger from the front office walks into
the weekly staff meeting, bearing a business
card that sports the Vancouver Sun banner and
the legend, "Nicole Parton, columnist". She’s
occupied the production manager’s office and
won’t leave until she sees the editor? Heavens,
and look at the #ie he’s wearing!

The Big Boys have sent up an ex-consumer
affairs writer and failed political candidate.
What kind of a monster story could she be
working on? Are we about to get scooped on
our own turf? .

The headline on the front page of the week-
end Sun reads, "Ball and chain". Of course,
how could anyone have missed it? The three-
year old story that is still dividing the com-
munity, threatening to destroy it. And that
headline... no wonder these people get paid a
fortune.

The Review news staff is immediately galvan-
ized into action. The president of the company

marches across Atwood St., Sun in hand. Over —

a beer-soaked terrycloth table cover in the

Skeena Hotel pub — - oops, beer parlour — he
asks Larry the bartender if he has read the

. article in which he figures so prominently.

"Nah," says Larry. "I don’t read much."

But what about the proprietor of the Skeena,
whose establishment was described by Parton
in such seedy terms? Is Norm concerned about

his image? Is he as sensitive as we are to being

from the “lower end" of town? Has this story
got him worried?

"Don’t f--kin’ think so!" says the bar man-
ager, tactfully substituting hyphens for key

letters in the offending word, a technique he

certainly must have learned from Ms. Parton

during her period of research in the bar.
And what about the man around whom all

this division began? Harrison is talking to no

one, still bearing yell marks from the previous

day, his lawyer having administered a long-

distance tongue-lashing shortly after the Sun
hit the streets Saturday. "She knocked on my
door and wouldn’t leave," he says.

Are we up against the wall? We must have a
stag party story. No one can accuse us of not
being able to learn from the Big Guys... and
Girls. That headline... the editor has a revel-
ation: the Big City folk must write the head
first, and then look for a story to fit the head.
This and other arcane secrets like it are not
taught in any school of journalism.

The reporter racks his brains, lost without a
police report. "What about that stag a few
years ago, the one where they handcuffed the

Bavarian?" a Ee “
The editor stares into space. ‘No lawsuit
there."
"Yeah, but he had to buy Gus a new toilet. a
"Sure, but what kind of a headline do you put

..on a story like that?"

The reporter has also learned from the Parton

experience. In the text of the story you want on

the front page, bury a few lines implying that
none of the other stories for the week have
much significance; presto! you can plant what-
ever you want as a lead story on the cover. _
Editorial control circumvention technique, he
decides to call it.

The reporter begins to list the hard news for

the current issue, a deadline bearing down on |
- him. The provincial budget has presented a
port to Kitimat, half of Thornhill nearly bumed .

down the previous day, a man was rescued by
helicopter from a mountainside west of town
after he fell during a climbing expedition and
broke his leg.

"No," the editor says. "Get me something on
the Harrison story, an update... secrets. We
must have secrets. This is dividing the com-
munity, threatening to destroy it. Drop every-
thing. Take three days, take a week. Go to
Vancouver if you have to. Talk to his lawyer.
If he won’t talk, refuse to leave his office until
he does. If he calls the police, well, that’s even
better. What a story — nobody will believe he
doesn’t have secrets. We have a mission here."

He stared into space, past the small, small
town, past the secret-encircling mountains,

guy to an anvil and he broke the toilet at the

oy Gh poapegety Wade d

The view from
Victoria —

by John Plifer

Established May 1, 1985
The Terrace Review Is published
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VICTORIA — It is time to
handicap the possible runners in
the Social Credit Party leader-
ship Sweepstakes... and believe
me, handicapped may just be the
operative word! -

With less than six weeks before
nominations close (June 27), not
a single stable has announced that
its nag will be running; but the
colours should start flying for a
few of them within the next few
days.

Here’s the form chart on the
most likely suspects... er, runners,
as well as a couple of dark
horses.
¢ Premier Rita Johnston: This
filly was having a good year,
moving to the top of the field on
April 2 when her stablemate Bill
Vander Zalm was disqualified.
But she is still suffering the
effects of a recent bumping in the
homestretch with Mel Couvelier,
during training for the big race.

Recent reports from her camp
suggest a possibility that she may
be scratched from the race alto-
gether, but that is far from a safe
bet. If Johnston is entered — and
so far, this scribe has no reason
to think she will not be, despite
what other published form charts
state — she must be considered
the carly favourite.

searching for a headline.

So this is what the big time’s like, he

| reflected.

| *Mel Couveller — Now the first

declared candidate.
* Grace McCarthy: Greatly dis-
pleased at the prospect of
Johnston running with an unfair
advantage, she announced on
May 3 that she would enter the
race, However, if Rita wavers,
watch for a change of heart here.
If Johnston were to scratch,
McCarthy would have to be con-
sidered the new pre-race favour-
ite, given her long and valued
record, and her victories in head-
to-head clashes with Vander
Zalm over the years.

Although she would be the
oldest one in the race, McCarthy
is not known to run out of gas;
and in the political enclosures,
experience is often a deciding
factor. Definitely still one to
watch.

« Claude Richmond/Stan
Hagen/Russ Fraser: Three frisky
colts currently sharing quarters in
the Johnston stable, who may
wish to distance themselves from
her, and to run in their own silks.

Richmond is the more experi-
enced and best-known of the
three, after 10 years on the cir-
cuit; and he has the best chance
to come up the middle if John-
ston and Couvelier tangle again.

Hagen gets support from the
intelligentsia, so may have access
to more funds for preparation
than previously expected.

Fraser has been tied up with |
legal matters, but may break from
those traces to show an indepen-
dent streak which might attract
substantial interest.

« John Reynolds: Another appar:

ent scratch, but one who seems
certain to stay out of the race. .
Appears to prefer running on the
fast track at the VSE with wild
horses, rather than with the thor-
oughbreds. Apparently he has
more than enough cash to meet
the entry requirements, if the
decision is changed.

DARK HORSE CANDIDATES
* Graham Bruce: This central
Vancouver Island stud only re-
cently moved into the inner
circle. Is likely to enter the field,
if only to gain more recognition
with the punters. Could garner
enough pari-mutuel support to
give assistance to one of the
front-runners during the race.

-* Gordon Campbell/Gerry St.

Germaine: Two outsiders who
have a core of support for their
work on other tracks (Vancouver
and Ottawa, respectively), and
whose trainers are testing the
wind to see whether there is any
point in running. Lack of prov-
ince-wide exposure could be
major handicap.

¢ Bill Vander Zalm: Desplie the
eatlier-mentioned disquallfication,
whining and whinnying from his
stable hints that this former leader
has visions of reviving his career.
It is most unlikely, but even if he
were to try to regain the old
form, his participation would be
solely for nuisance value, or for
media's amusement.

Meanwhile, chomping on the bit
to take on the winner of the pro-

vinclal Sweepstakes which will

— Continued on page A7

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